Aishwarya Ananth Karthik, senior disciple of Prof Sudharani Raghupathy,
gave a highly satisfying recital on the 30th of December 2016 under the
aegis of Narada Gana Sabha, Chennai.

Commencing the recital with "Jaya Janaki Kantha," a Purandara Dasa kriti
in Ragamalika and Talamalika singing the praise of lord Rama, Aishwarya
went on to perform the main piece of the recital, a Swarajathi in ragam
Useni, talam rupakam, a composition of the Tanjore Quartet, commencing
with the lyrics "Ye mandayaa na raa na Swami niki ye mandu paetanu raa
na Swami..." - what potion have you been given, dear Lord? The nayika
laments that her lover has been administered a love potion by another
woman and he has fallen for her. Aishwarya did a sanchari showing the
heroine telling her lover that the other woman is fat, with protruding
teeth and he has fallen for her under the influence of a love potion.
The other sancharis elaborated on her lover being a courageous warrior
who was also the heartthrob of many women. "Prema meeraga nanneru
pilichithe ravani" - with love for your company I am requesting you to
come to me, why don't you?

In the charanam line the lyrics run as follows, "Au lera ninne mayavanti
vachi nijam palichu valachiti kata ra ippudu telisinura." The kanditha
nayika says she has heard enough and is aware of the truth and asks him
to go to the other woman. Aishwarya's abhinaya for "Prema meeraga" and
"Au lera" were outstanding and the jathis which were interspersed were
executed with absolute precision which drew repeated applause from the
audience in Narada Gana Sabha hall.

Immediately following the Swarajathi was "Bhavayami Gopalabalam" in
Yamuna Kalyani immortalised by the great MS Subbulakshmi. A bhakthi
laden piece worshipping Gopala and referring to "Kathi ta tita mekhala
kachita mani khantika"- the odhiyanam tied to the waist of young Gopala
though veiled gives proof of its presence through the ringing bells
sound. The devotee tells Gopala, "Please purify me with your young
feet." Aishwarya, in this item brought Gopala before the eyes of the
audience ultimately referring to Thiruvenkatachalam in Tirupathi.

She then took up Swati Thirunal's Brindavanasaranga composition "Chaliye
Kunjanamo tum hum mil Shyam Hari." The gist of the song is, "Oh Shyam
Hari, let us meet at the bower!" admiring the beauty of the Yamuna river
and the mellifluous voice of the cuckoo bird. Aishwarya brought the
spirit of Swati Thirunal's kriti abundantly before the audience with her
meaningful abhinayam. The fitting finale was a thillana in ragam
Hindolam, a composition of Madurai N Krishnan in adi talam in praise of
Raja Rajeshwari. From the attami which was seen at the beginning of the
thillana, the various nadais were brilliantly executed by Aishwarya. She
will go places with more opportunities coming her way being under the
tutelage of a leading guru like Prof Sudharani Raghupathy and ably
mentored by Priya Murle. She will be an artiste to watch out for in the
years to come.

The orchestral support by vocalist Nandini Anand, effective percussion
of Dhanajayan, violin by Satish Kumar and flute by Sruthi Sagar lifted
the performance to great heights. Priya Murle, a senior disciple of
Sudharani Raghupathy, wielded the cymbals very convincingly.